Meat-slicing machine



(No Model.)

B. B. PUMPHREY.

MEAT SLIGING MACHINE.

No. 337,790. Patented Mar. 9, 1886.

INVENTOR:

Attorney.

N. PEYERS. Phoxvumn m hen Wnshingwn, D.C,

if F F I CEO ATENT ROBERT B. PUMPHREY, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

MEAT-SLICING MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, ROBERT B. PUMPHREY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Meat-Slicing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in meat-slicing machines.

The object is to provide an improved construction of means for operating the slicingknife, and also means for regulating the feeding of the meat to the knife.

The invention will first be described and then claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front end view of the machine. Fig. 2 is a side elevation, a part of the box being in section to show the feed-apron and follower. Fig. 3 is also aside view showing the feed-regulating mechanism on a larger scale. Fig. 4 is a view of the feed-pawl lifting-rod, showing the side trans verse to that seen in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a view of the lever which operates the slicing-knife and the crank-arm attached to the pivot-bolt of the lever which raises the feed-pawl liftingrod. Fig. 6 is a view of the adjustable stop device which regulates the movement of the feed-pawl lifting-rod. Fig. 7 shows a modified construction for attaching the slicing blade. Fig. 8 is an illustration, separately, of the follower.

The slicing-knife A is here shown as a straight blade. The hand-lever B works on a pivot, a, at one end, the said pivot being fixed to a standard, I), at the front of the meat-box O, and projecting above it. Near the pivot a is a socket, c, on the lever. Vhen the hand-lever has a horizontal position, its

socket c is open in a vertical direction. (Indicated in Fig. 5 by broken lines.) An arm, d, has its upper end slipped into the said socket, and is confined there by a set-screw, c, and the lower end of this arm is connected by a pivot, e, to one end of the slicing-knife. It will thus be seen the arm 01 is rigidly connected to the hand-lever, and has a position substantially at right angles with respect thereto, and is pivoted at the front and at one side of the machine. The heel end of the knife is suspended by a rod, 61', whose upper end occupies a socket-piece, f, where it is confined by a set- .JPECEFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 337,790, dated March 9, 1.886.

Application filed April 14, 1885. Serial No. 162,245.

(No model.)

screw, 0. The socket-piece is pivoted at f to the front standard and at the other side of the machine. This means for suspending the slicing-knife enables it to be worked by lifting the hand-lever, as indicated by broken lines in Fig. 1, and the knife may thus be raised as high as desired. The attachment of the arm (I and rod (1 in sockets by means of set-screws enables the knife to be lowered whenever it becomes narrower by its cuttingedge 9 wearing away.

Two vertical bars, h, are made fast at the front end of the machine in such way as to leave a space between said bars and the end of the meat-box. The slicing-knife A has its movement in this space, and thereby the bars serve as guides to confine the knife close to the end of the meat-box.

The bottom E of the meat-box has at each end a roller, The front roller (not shown) is mounted on the shaft i, and an endless apron, it, passes over the two rollers and the bottom E.

The follower consists of a suitably-shaped box or block, F, (see Figs. 1 and 8,) which fits loosely within the meat-box. It is provided on the bottom with downward-projecting pointed pins or claws, Z, which pitch or incline therefrom. The follower is set upon the endless apron, as shown in Fig. 1, and a slight pressure upon it causes its claws l to penetrate in the aprons surface, and thereby the follower becomes engaged with the apron and will not slip or move from its position.

When the meat to be sliced is placed upon the endless apron at w, in front of the follower, the movement of the apron will feed the meat to the knife. When the follower has ap proached close to the knife, and it is desired to place another piece of meat in position, the follower may be lifted to release its claws from the apron, and may then be set back on the apron toward the rear end of the meat box, and its claws will again engage with the apron.

The feed mechanism by which the apron is moved consists of aratchet-wheel, V, on the shaft 1' of the front roller. A pawl-box, m, is centered on the end of the shaft 6, and a pawl, n, pivoted to this box, engages with the ratchet-wheel A vertical rod, G, has up-anddown movement in a guide or keeper, 0, on the side of the meat-box O. The rod, as shown in Fig. 4, has at its upper end a Vertical slot,

pin, n

p, and aright-angled lifting shoulder, q. It also has midway of its ends a projecting pivot- A crank-arm, q, is fixed on the pivotbolt a of the hand-lever. (See Figs. 2, 4, and 5.) The pivot-bolt a occupies the vertical slotp of the rod, and the latter is kept on the bolt by a burr or nut, a. The wrist-pin q of the crank-arm g has position under the lifting-shoulder q of the rod. It will thus be seen that when the hand-lever B is raised the wrist-pin q" of the crank-arm will be brought up against the lifting-shoulder q of the rod G, and therebyraise said rod, at which time the slotted part 1) of the rod in which the pivot bolt a fits will slide up on said pivot-bolt. A link-rod, I, has its upper end on the pivotpin a of the rod G, and its lower end is jointed at r to the pawl-box m. WVhen, therefore; the rod G is raised, the link-rod willpartly rotate forward the pawl-box m, and, through the action of the pawl n on the ratchetwheel cause the front roller -shaft t" to partly turn and move the endless apron, with the meat upon it, toward the knife.

An adjustable-stop device, S, has position below the lower end of the feed-paw1 liftingrod G, and serves to restrict the down movement of the said rod. WVhen the rod G and link-rod I have been raised by the wrist pin q upon the crank arm q, they will drop or move down by their own gravity, and thereby carry the pawl-box backward. Any restriction, therefore, on the down movement of the rod G limits the back-throw of the pawl 12, and results in a lessened move of the endless apron, whereby a thinner slice of meat will be cut by the knife.

The stop device S may beset lower or higher, so as to give Inore or less down movement to the rod G. The means by which the position of this stop is changed is shown in Figs. 3and The stop consists of an arm, 8, having at one end a clamp -head, 8, which fits over a vertical slide, 1, secured on the meat box. The vertical slide has a slot, t, and the clamp head carries a threaded bolt, u, and a thumbnut, u. The head of the bolt, as shown in Fig. (i, is on the under side of the vertical slide, and when the thumb-nut is loosened the stoparm 81 may be raised or lowered to any position and set'by tightening the thumb-nut.

The slicing-blade has heretofore been described as conneoted to the arm (1 and rod d; but a superior construction is shown in Fig. 7. Here a back or knifeholder, V, is connected to the arm d androd d. This back V is rabbeted to form a flange, w, and provided with screws 31 The knife-blade A has screw-holes, and fits in the rabbet against the flange 20, and the screws 1 retain it in position. The knife thus attached to the back operates, so far as slicing is concerned, exactly the same as that shown in Fig. 1 but the advantage of the construction shown in Fig. 7 is that when the, knife-edge needs grinding the blade can more readily be detached and replaced.

The endless apron, as an element in the' tion a hand lever provided with a rightangled arm and pivoted. at the front and at one side of the machine, and having a crankarm on its pivot bolt, a rod pivoted at the front and at the other side of the machine, a

slicing-blade suspended to the said arm and rod, a meat-carrier, and feed mechanism, subsPautially as described, connecting the meatcarrier with the said crank-arm, attached to the hand-lever, as set forth.

2. A slicing-machine having in combina tion a hand-lever pivoted at the front and at one side ofthe machine and provided near said pivot with a socket having a set-screw, and an arm having its upper end held in the socket, a vertically-adj ustable rod, 01, pivoted at the front and at the other side of the machine, and a slicingblade suspended to the said arm and rod, as set forth.

3. A slicing-machine having in combination a slicing-blade, an endless apron to feed the article'to be sliced, and a follower provided with claws to engage with the endless apron, as set forth.

4:. A slicingmachine having in combination, a pivoted hand-lever provided with a right-angled arm and a crank-arm on its pivot-bolt, a rod pivoted at one end and having position'parallel with the rightangled arm, a slicing-blade suspended to the said arm and rod, a rollershaft having a feed apron attached and provided with a ratchet-wheel, a feed-pawl,and a lifting-rod connecting the said crank-arm and feed-pawl, as set forth.

5. A slicingmachine having in combination aroller-shaft having a feed -apron attached and provided with a ratchet-wheel, a

box, m, carrying a feed-pawl, a pawl -lifting. rod, G, havinga guide or keeper which per mits it to move up and down, a link-rod,I, con-v necting the pawl-box and lifting-rod, and an adjustable stop device to restrict the movement of the said lifting-rod, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I-aflixmy signature in presenceof two witnesses.

JOHN E. MORRIS, JNo. T. MADDOX. 

